Bad Day
by Aoi Para
Summary: Riku wanted to take the raft and leave, so he did, leaving Sora and Kairi behind on the beach. A twist on the days spent on Destiny Islands. KH1, AU. Character Death.


**Author's Note:** So I decided to do a one shot that'd been bugging me forever. This took a lot out of my Beta, Stu-P0t. She cried just about every time she read it, and she read it like 100 times. So you guys, Review for her sake.

Also, I'mma come clean with this: This isn't my best work. Some of you guys have read _Genova Genetics_ or _Drowning in My Dearly Beloved_ and those are pretty good, but they don't get reviews. It's annoying. One Shots don't get many reviews to begin with, but I've noticed, along with a lot of other ppl, that only the crappy writers and people like The Glass Slipper and Vash's Girl get reviews. Yeah, their stories are great and deserve the praise, but it really hurts the people that are good but not that good that get NO recognition. So, please REVIEW.

And if you end up crying because of this, then that just means you should review all the more. I want to know how this affects you guys, the readers.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts. I just use the characters for my sick pleasure.

-.-.-.-.-

Sora found himself panting, a pout forming on his lips as he picked himself up from the sand. He dusted the grains off his bottom before turning to face Selphie. The girl was smiling, practically gloating, as she did a small victory dance.

"You must really be having a bad day! I can't believe you lost," she said, giving Sora a particularly sweet smile. The brunet simply shook his head.

"More like a bad week. I haven't even been able to land a single blow on Riku at all in the last few days. I couldn't beat Wakka or Tidus yesterday. I couldn't even beat you today," Sora said, jutting his bottom lip out slightly.

"You can't beat Riku because he's Riku, silly. Tidus and Wakka started going to the gym when they do come here. Say it's for sports, you know? Where else do you think that Tidus is getting his new muscles from? And as for me? I've been getting tips from Riku. Maybe you should ask him too!" Selphie said in her own way of comfort. Sora only shook his head adamantly.

"I can't ask him. He'll just laugh at me. Besides, what would Kairi think?"

"Sora, that's not true! And I'm sure Kairi won't think any different."

"Yeah. But I've got my pride you know? I think I'm going to go challenge Tidus again. See if I do any better today. Then I'll go find Kairi." With that said, Sora stalked off to find his blond friend. Tidus was clearly visible from the beach. He was practicing on top of the ship. On his way up, Sora grabbed the cloth from the tree house. When he reached the ship, he grabbed the rope then moved to talk to Tidus.

"Hey bud, you look pretty busy. What you up to?" Tidus asked, stopping his swinging and turning to Sora.

"Ah, not much. Just running errands for Kairi," Sora said, putting his hands behind his head.

"You too? Damn. She can be evil too. She had Riku running around a little while ago hauling logs and who knows what else," Tidus said, motioning out to the forest. Sora's gaze followed the stretched appendage.

"I guess, but I don't mind since she's keeping us on schedule. Say, do you wanna spar?" Sora turned back to the blond.

"Yeah, I don't see why not. I bet you'll lose again, though. Let's go down to the beach." Sora nodded at Tidus' proposal and followed him down. Once there they spread out. Wakka, sensing the oncoming fight, took charge as referee.

When Wakka gave the signal, the two boys charged at each other. Sora lifted his wooden sword to hit Tidus, but the blond countered by jumping over Sora and attacking him from behind before the brunet could even do anything. Sora turned around but was smacked by Tidus again. This process continued on for a few minutes until Sora fell to the ground.

"Told ya so," Tidus laughed. "But hey, it was a good fight anyway."

"Yeah, I guess it was," Sora grumbled, brushing the sand off his pants as he stood. "But it just shows I'm the weakest on the island."

-.-.-.-.-

Sora and Kairi joined Riku on the Paopu Island just before sundown. The tall silveret slipped from his perch on the tree to stand as his two best friends climbed onto the bent Paopu tree to sit side by side. He didn't even look at them, hadn't even seen them coming. He heard them, and that's all that really mattered at the moment. They didn't say anything, just gazed at the setting sun.

"It'll only be a few days until we're ready to leave, right?" Riku broke the silence. "It'll be great, sailing over the ocean. We'll find new worlds. I'm sure of it."

"How far can a raft really take us, though?" Kairi asked, looking down at Riku, her eyes wide. He sighed before turning to look at her.

"I don't know, but we have to try. I can't just sit here any more. I mean, if there are other worlds out there, why are we on this one? I want to see them."

"You really wanna get out of here, huh?" Sora said, leaning out to look past Kairi.

"Well, yeah. Destiny is just so boring. I want to go somewhere where I don't know anything. Where I don't know what's going to happen or what's around the next corner," Riku explained, turning back to the sunset. He could never really manage to look at Sora when talking about those kinds of things. He always got the feeling that they thought he was stupid for his ambitions.

"That really sounds like an adventure," Sora said, a small smile slipping onto his lips.

"Can't we do that here too? Adventure, I mean?" Kairi asked, looking at Sora with big eyes.

"It's only pretend if we do it here. I want to go out and find a real adventure to go on," Riku replied, shaking his head. Kairi just didn't seem to get it anymore. She was becoming more and more girly these days, losing her tomboy ways.

"I guess you have a point there," Kairi replied. They fell silent for a moment.

"You know, Kairi, if you hadn't of come here, I would have never dreamed of leaving the island. Thank you for opening my mind," Riku said, concealing the building weight on his chest.

"Really? You're welcome then, I guess," Kairi giggled. Sora leaned out slightly to look at Riku, a small frown tugging on his lips.

"Hey, let's start heading back now. If we leave now, we might make it to the other shore before dark," the brunet suggested. Kairi smiled brightly at Sora, making him blush slightly.

"That sounds like a great idea!" she giggled. She hopped down for the tree and ran off first. Sora walked at a more sedate pace, looking at Kairi as she ran off. Riku climbed the Paopu tree and grabbed one of the star-shaped fruits before jumping down with it. He quickly called to Sora and caught up with him.

"Hey, you always wanted to try one, right?" He said, shoving the fruit into Sora's hand before running off. Sora simply sputtered for a moment before throwing the fruit away and running after the other two. Riku was acting weirder by the day.

-.-.-.-.-

Sora sighed, picking himself up from yet another defeat at the hands of Selphie. That was two days in a row that he couldn't beat her. She was a girl for crying out loud, and Sora knew that he was stronger than her when it came time to lift weights. It was starting to get embarrassing that he couldn't win, and Tidus was taking to teasing him over the Selphie fiascos.

The brunet decided that it was probably a good idea to head on over to where Kairi was to find out what he needed for the day. He passed through the Island Shack and made his way to the beach alcove that had the raft stashed away. Before he could go past the obstacle course, however, he saw Riku staring out at the sea.

"Hey, since you can't beat me in a battle, how about we race?" Riku suggested when he heard Sora approach from behind.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I think I can win that. If I win, we get to name the ship Excalibur," Sora said, a grin breaking out on his face. "What will you get if you win?"

"The winner should share a Paopu with Kairi," Riku stated in a flat tone. Sora looked at him strangely for a moment.

"You seem to be thinking of Paopu fruit a lot lately. Why do you want to share a Paopu with Kairi anyway?" Sora asked, looking out across at the girl.

"I have my reasons," Riku said, shifting.

"Well, I'm not going to let you win if that's gonna be your answer. I don't wanna lose Kairi in a stupid race," Sora said as he waved Kairi over and they lined up to start. When Kairi gave the signal, Riku was off. Sora hadn't anticipated such a burst of speed. He caught up with the silveret just in time for the older boy to jump onto the cable that took him to the other side. The brunet opted for jumping on the trees. Sora was halfway across the trees when Riku touched the Star Tree and started jumping a different path across the treetops to get back to Kairi. Sora sighed, frustrated, and made his way to the Star Tree before bolting back to Kairi with everything he could muster, a sour look twisting onto his face.

"Great. Now it's five billion to zero," Sora pouted. Kairi only giggled and ran back off to the raft, giving Sora her condolences as she passed. "This totally sucks. Now you and Kairi are going to be together forever and I'll have no chance."

"You mad about that? I just wanted to see your reaction. I wasn't really serious," Riku said, looking at what he considered his best friend.

"That's really mean, Riku."

"Look, I'm a bit jealous, ok? But… she has no interest for me. Her eyes are only for you. You should go for it," Riku said, a slight, cocky smile taking over his lips.

"You really think so? I've been so worried that you've been trying to steal her away," Sora said, relieved.

"Nah. There was no chance to begin with. You two have been together since she got here. I've probably known since then."

"Still, it's not nice to tease me like that."

"I know. I guess I'll stop from now on."

"Good. You really don't know how much that means to me, Riku. You're probably one of the best friends I have when you aren't being cocky or a show off."

"Best friend, huh? I… I can deal with that. I mean, you're mine too. We've only been together since diapers, after all."

"Hey, don't get jealous over Kairi anymore, ok? You're a good looking guy and there are lots of girls your age and older out there. I'm sure you'll find the right one."

"Yeah. I guess you're right. Other fish in the sea and all that jazz. Hey, promise me one thing, Sora."

"Sure. What is it?"

"Take care of Kairi. She can be too dense and weak sometimes to do it herself. I'll get really mad if you don't take care of her, got it?"

"Hey, no problem there. I think I'll confess to her tonight," Sora said, rubbing the back of his head. Riku slapped Sora on the back and gave him a grin.

"Right. Good luck then."

-.-.-.-.-

Sora and Kairi were perched on the dock, watching the sunset. They'd broken off from the others earlier when everyone was leaving. As far as they knew only they and Riku were still even on the island**.** They sat with their hands nearly touching. Sora had a slight tint on his cheeks.

"Tomorrow's gonna be the day we leave," Sora said with a heavy sigh.

"Riku's kinda changed over the last couple of months," Kairi said, offhandedly.

"Yeah he has. He's been quieter, and he's always staring out at the horizon. I'm starting to get a little worried," Sora said, running a hand through his spikes.

"Yeah. And it's like, he's so obsessed with leaving. I guess it might be fun, but I like it here, with you."

"Yeah. I know what you mean. As long as I have you by my side, Kairi, I don't really need to go on an adventure."

"Really?" Kairi giggled. "Then let's just take the raft right now and leave, just the two of us!"

"What? Wouldn't that really upset Riku? I mean really."

"Serves him right. If he wants to go on an adventure, he'll have to make another raft. That one should be for lovers. We could elope!"

"Oh, gosh. I really hope Riku doesn't hear any of this. He'd be so mad."

"I'm sure he'd get over it. He's a big boy, you know," Kairi giggled. She stood and held a hand out to Sora. "Come on. Let's head back now."

"Right. Sounds good to me," Sora said smiling. He took Kairi's hand. When he was standing he leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on her cheek, his blush growing darker. Kairi giggled, leaned forward and pecked Sora on the lips, then dodged around him and hopped into their boat.

Riku sighed from his hiding place**. **He watched the two row to the main island before putting the binoculars down. He jumped down from the boardwalk that lead to the tree house and walked to the Island Shack. He grabbed the blanket they kept there for emergencies and dragged it back to the tree house.

-.-.-.-

That night, a storm started to brew over the islands. Sora looked out the at the play island with a worried face. They were supposed to leave the next day and the raft was probably being destroyed. He briefly wondered if Riku had snuck out to secure the raft in a safer place when his cell phone rang. He reached over to the bedside table and flipped it open.

"Hello?" he asked, not exactly sure who was calling at a time like this.

"Sora, is Riku there?" Riku's mother asked, her voice filled with worry.

"No. Have you tried his cell?" Sora asked, a little puzzled.

"He doesn't have it. It's in his room. I'm getting worried. He hasn't come home."

"Have you tried Kairi's?"

"Yeah. I tried there first. He isn't there either."

"That's strange."

"He didn't come home last night either so I thought that maybe he just ran away to your place. I was going to leave it alone until he decided to come back, but the storm…"

"Maybe he's on the play island. I think he'll be fine if he's there. There're plenty of places to take cover."

"I hope so, Sora. It's too dangerous to go and check now with the wind and the waves. I'm going to call a few more places. Thanks for the help Sora."

"Yeah. Good luck," Sora said before their goodbyes and hung up. He was tempted to go out and check the island himself but his mother called him down to dinner.

-.-.-.-

The next day Sora found himself on the play island, bright and early. The sun had just barely risen, but he couldn't hold off any longer. He made his way to the Secret Place—the most secure place in the island—but there were no signs of Riku. He paused at the picture of Kairi and himself they had drawn when they were little that he'd modified a few days ago. It'd seemed that Kairi had been in recently and seen it herself as her picture was now giving Sora a Paopu.

He stood and headed to where the raft was. Maybe Riku was up repairing it. When he got to the area, however, there was no raft to be found and no Riku in sight. A little startled, and more than a little worried, Sora headed towards the beach shack. Again, no Riku. His final stop was the tree house. There couldn't have been any other place that Riku could have stayed.

It was there that he finally found signs of life. A pillow, a bottle of water and a few food wrappers were strewn on the floor. He looked around and caught the spare blanket from the beach shack in the corner of his eyes. It was hanging on the wall where the cloth used for the raft used to hang. He grabbed it, wondering why Riku would hang it up like that. The blanket fell away from the wall easily, revealing words strewn all along the wall underneath. Sora touched the black marker gently before reading the largest print in the middle of the rest.

_I've decided to take the raft and go. Sorry Sora, Kairi. I know you both put a lot of effort into it too, but I just couldn't wait another day for you two. I'm going to go find another world where I can be happier. I'm not sure where or how long it'll take, or even if the storm will get to me before I make it, but I'm going to try. No matter what happens, at least I'll be free either way._

"You idiot!" Sora cried, hitting the wall. He turned his head to the smaller words which appeared to be messages for the others.

_Tidus, I really hope you make into the sports teams when you start high school this next year. You're getting really strong and fast. We've had some good times._

_Selphie, girl I never thought you could get that good with that jump rope. It was fun training you. And I guess you really are a love psychic. Sora and Kairi did get together._

_Wakka, I'm going to miss you, really. All those pranks we used to pull on Selphie and Tidus were the best._

_Kairi, I guess you won. But it was worth a shot wasn't it? I couldn't really compete. Anyway, good luck. Anyway, I thank you again for giving me this idea. I would have never have thought about this if it weren't for you._

"Won at what?" Sora wondered aloud before reading the one addressed to himself.

_Sora. Where do I start with you? We probably won't ever see each other again, so it's safe to write this here. I was so jealous when Kairi came and you started spending more time with her than me. I guess I didn't really realize what it all meant until a long time after that. I love you. I think that's why I really just had to get away after you and Kairi got together. Anyway, that Paopu was really sweet, though it left a really bitter aftertaste._

Sora's blood ran cold. He stopped and reread the words over and over again. Things from the past few days and before flashed in his mind with new meaning. Riku had given him a damn Paopu and he just threw it aside. Riku had retrieved it later and eaten it, alone. Sora felt overwhelming guilt wash over him. Tears started to well up in his eyes, but he didn't allow them to fall. He still had a few more messages to read.

_Mom, I'm sorry, but you can tell Dad to go fucking die in a hole. I'm tired of getting beaten and raped because you want to get divorced._

Sora couldn't read anymore after that, though there was more written to Riku's mother. He could barely breathe. The tears leaked from his eyes. Yes, Riku had changed. Riku had really changed, but it wasn't like he'd had a choice. Sora realized that. He'd been a horrible best friend. He should have seen.

-.-.-.-

It wasn't until two days later that pieces of the raft were found on the beach of the island that Sora lived on. It was only a couple of hours after that that Riku was found cold, dead, bloated with water and partially eaten by fish. Sora had been among the search party that found him. It was a traumatizing experience at the least. But what really hurt everyone deep down was what the coroner's report said.

Riku had taken a knife, most likely a pocketknife, and slit his arm from wrist to elbow. Yes, Riku had made it to another world. He made sure of it. It was then that everyone knew that the note scribbled on the wall of the tree house was definitely a suicide note.

It was all Sora could do to stay clinging to Kairi at the funeral and not attack the coffin.


End file.
